


Opposites Attract (With Time)

by Sukoshinya



Category: NCT (Band), SM Rookies
Genre: A DOMESTIC SPIN OFF SET OF DRABBLES ABOUT YUTA AND DOYOUNG WILL ALSO BE PUBLISHED ;), Doyoung is the manager at Barnes & Nobles, Haechan is his assistant, Hansol and Ten work at Lush!!, I LIED YUTA WORKS AT A RLLY NICE SUSHI PLACE CALLED MIKUNIS, Jaehyun is a coffee boy, M/M, MALL AU???, Mark works training shifts with Jaehyun at the coffee kiosk, Other, Sicheng works at Forever 21. Johnny works at Hot Topic., Taeil is Doyoung's roomate who also works at Barns & Nobles but he's lowkey dead, Taeyong also works at Hot Topic because ya boy is emo af, Two worlds collide when the flower boy and the punk kid who both work in the mall are super gay, do you guys remember the show 6teen? this is basically 6teen, some very brief weed implications
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-03
Updated: 2018-01-16
Packaged: 2018-12-10 15:14:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11694339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sukoshinya/pseuds/Sukoshinya
Summary: You can have a crush on a guy you’ve never really talked to right? Or a guy you never want to talk to? Or a guy you never want to actually meet? What sort of god forbidden, punk-marshmallow mashup was this?





	1. Punks Over Flowers

**Author's Note:**

> (MORE NOTES AT THE BOTTOM!)  
> \---  
> just in case you guys wanted a visual rep of what these nerds look like, i made some steal his look / starter packs for johnny and sicheng:  
> https://twitter.com/sichengrice/status/893175595915399168

Sicheng was crouched, hands working in a steady pattern; stacking tshirts, all sorted by color. Each one of them had a different fruit embroidered just above the pocket. An avocado, then a pineapple, then a watermelon. He chewed the inside of his cheek while he worked through his tedious routine. Were avocados fruits? They might be. They make cute designs. They have a seed right?   
The store’s welcoming sensor let out a small chirp, quickly pulling him away from his thoughts. He stood cleared his throat, picking at the collar of his sweater as he turned around. “Good morning! Welcome to Forever 21.”  
Two girls smiled at him, nodding in unison. “Hello!”  
“We’re having a small sale this week; all sunglasses and earrings are buy one get one free. Let me know if you need help finding anything!” Sicheng chimed, returning their smiles. The girls thanked him before slinking over towards the stand of earrings in interest at his pitch.   
He looked back at the box on the floor by the display, now empty with only a couple plastic snips and stray tags at the bottom. A pair of delicate hands wrapped themselves around the sides on the box and lifted it off the floor. Sicheng followed the hands up their arms to find a face.  
Yiyang was beaming at him, “I’ll grab this for you. What are you spacing out for? You had breakfast, didn’t you?”

Sicheng shook his head, half to signal reassurance and half to clear his own head, “I did. I’m just tired, I guess.” He replied. He didn’t talk a lot, usually, even when he had more to say. Yiyang was used to his short answers- she didn’t need him to express vocally how he was feeling anyways; 

“Jaehyun is always willing to slip you free food over at that little cafe kiosk over by Baskin Robbins. I grabbed a doughnut from him before I came in today. You should go over there soon. I can watch the store for you- barely anyone comes in at this hour,” She paused for a moment, nodding over to the two girls who were shuffling near the jewelry, “Cept’ maybe one or two.” The girl adjusted the box in her arms so that she was holding it from the bottom.    
Sicheng scratched the back of his head stuffing his free hand into the pocket of his shorts. 

“I’ll do that then. Sorry.”

“It’s all cool. As long as you’re okay. I know you get like this in the morning.”

She was right, he figured. He was always a bit spacy when he worked on the weekend mornings. The mall’s soft hum of pop music and distant voices somehow lulled him into an even heavier state of spaciness.    
  


“You look like a flower, as usual. What’s got you so gloomy today?”   
Sicheng scratched the counter, “I’m not gloomy. I was just up all night.”   
Jaehyun snapped his fingers, drawing Sicheng’s eyes up to his face. “I’ll make you a latte with an extra shot to go with your danish. I’m assuming it was school right?”

Jaehyun’s dimples were accented on either side of his sympathetic smile. That smile, in particular, was almost contagious. Sicheng smiled in turn almost immediately as if he was under some sort of mind control, standing up straight.   
“I had to submit a paper for art class on color theory.”   
As Jaehyun turned, gathering things in his hands to start the latte, he laughed in reply,  
“Yellow is the opposite of purple. That’s all I know.”   
Sicheng gazed over his friend’s outfit with a fox-like grin- the dark brown apron with the royal blue tshirt and white jeans...  
“That uniform is ugly. That’s all I know.” He giggled.   
Jaehyun snorted, “We can’t all look like we popped out of some artsy instagram picture. I’m required to wear this. I can make it look good.”

“Sure.”

Jaehyun turned to face him again, hands working around the machine for steamed milk. He looked up, past Sicheng and his smiled returned. Sicheng blinked as he spoke.   
“Hey, Johnny. What can I get for you today?”

What? Oh-

Sicheng turned, hunting for the source of Jaehyun’s new attention. His breath caught in his throat. The Johnny in question was a couple steps behind him, shuffling up to the counter. And he knew him.    
The smaller boy stepped aside quickly, making his way around to the pick-up side of the counter near the pastry case. He put one of his hands up to his lips and started to pick at his nails with his teeth as he stared at the older man. 

Johnny worked at the Hot Topic directly across from the Forever 21. It was almost every work day that Sicheng watched him from his own store, staring for long minutes or just catching glances here and there. It was around three months ago when the guy started working there, a good difference from the year that Sicheng had been at his own place. He knew almost everyone who worked at the mall, or at least at the shops on his side and most of the staff at the food court. Johnny was not one of the people he actually knew...personally. He had only ever observed the guy from afar, avoiding any actual interaction. He hadn’t even stepped foot into the Hot Topic more than maybe once or twice to talk with Taeyong, the manager, but there wasn’t even a chance he would now. You can have a crush on a guy you’ve never really talked to right? Or a guy you never want to talk to? Or a guy you never want to actually meet?  
Johnny was tall, hovering far above most of his peers. He always dressed exactly how you think your typical loyal-Hot Topic-employee would dress. Ripped skinny jeans, studded belts, lame t shirts and flannels, beanies and god; even the whole thing with wearing headphones around your neck even though you weren’t even going to use them to listen to music. Not to mention the Doc Martins. A complete emo nightmare. 

But he was cute. A little more than cute. Somehow.    
“Hey Jaejae. Can I get a hazelnut latte? Also a regular cappuccino. Taeyong is dying.”

Sicheng blinked. Okay, so they were friends. 

Oh.   
Images of Sicheng sitting with Jaehyun after class at his place, chatting after work, texting between shifts-...all times where Sicheng had said this and that about the cute asshole who worked at the fucking **_Hot Topic_** , god forbid, came flooding into his head.   
He bit down on of his nails hard, creating a tear on the side. He made a small sound, lowering his hand. Johnny looked away from his conversation with Jaehyun, curious.   
The older boy bit his lip.   
It wasn’t like Johnny, even on his side of the world, didn’t share the same opinion of Sicheng. The whole, “Oh god, he’s cute. A little more than cute.” thing. And it wasn’t as if he hadn’t done the exact same thing in regards to ranting to Jaehyun. Complaining that the cute boy who worked at that preppy store was totally out of his league and he was totally avoiding him.  
The quick, painful eye contact made both Sicheng and Johnny look elsewhere as quick as possible, eyes searching desperately for something to focus on.  
Jaehyun’s voice pulled Sicheng’s gaze to him, Johnny’s frame dangerously visible in the corner of his eye.   
“Here, Winnie. Vanilla chai latte with your strawberry danish.”   
“You didn’t have to remind me what my order was outloud…Don’t call me Winnie right now, dude...” Sicheng mumbled sheepishly, suddenly embarrassed for ordering what he had. Jaehyun was totally pulling shit right now. Fuck.   
Johnny’s own voice made Jaehyun look over, almost causing Sicheng do the same. He fought to look down at his coffee instead.   
“Can I have one of those too? The uh- strawberry thing.”  
There was a pause between them as Jaehyun opened the pastry display.   
“Uh, I think Winnie got that last one.”  
“You can have mine.”  
Sicheng’s voice surprised the two elders, earning a soft sound from the back of Johnny’s throat.  
The younger boy took his coffee and the pastry in its baggie, slipping around the counter before setting it down gently. He stepped back, creating a new distance between him and Johnny.  
“Sorry- I’m not all that hungry. I’ve gotta get back to work.”  
Even from where Sicheng was, Johnny could smell his shampoo. He smelled just as strongly of strawberries as the danish. Pink dared to spread across his cheeks and he wrapped the cord of his headphones around finger, pulling tight. He took the risk of looking at the boy directly.  
_Regret. Abort_.   
Sicheng was nervously holding his coffee up to his face, the sleeves of his sweater covering his hands. He nodded to Jaehyun before taking his leave, his red hair falling into his eyes as he turned to shuffle away. The shade of cherry suited him perfectly, accenting his lips and blushed, mismatched ears. Johnny felt something rise up in his throat- possibly a blood curdling scream. Maybe it was bile- the kid was cute enough to make someone sick, after all.   
  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
“Wait, you guys know each other? Dude, I’ve fucking known you for years and you’re just now telling me over this cup of coffee that you take Lit together?” Johnny snapped, leaning over the counter. Jaehyun slid two cups of coffee over to him with a gentle expression.  
“I’ve told you before. You were super high both times.”

“You could have told me when I wasn’t high?”

“I thought it was funnier.”

Johnny rubbed his thumb over the pastry baggie, “I hope to god you didn’t say anything. That would be so uncool.”   
“I can if you want me to.” Jaehyun replied, slipping two black stoppers into the cup lids.

The elder’s eyes narrowed-. Some might find his expressions intimidating, but Jaehyun was on a different level with Johnny. It was almost kinda cute.    
“I haven’t said anything. I don’t even think he knows we’re friends. You know, you’re lucky I don’t have any other customers right now. You’d be holding up the line with all this geeky crush talk, goth boy.”

Johnny looked behind him to confirm that there weren’t any other guests before shooting Jaehyun another look. 

“It’s not a crush. And I’m not goth. Its 2017.”

“I can’t believe you’re crushing on a flower boy. You’re complete opposites.” Jaehyun chimed, ignoring his friend’s reply. “He’s friends with Tae, too, y’know.”

“Yeah, I figured. Tae walks over there to talk to Yiyang and him sometimes. I haven’t told him anything though.”

“It’s because he thinks Sicheng is cute.Maybe he beat you to him.”

In another universe, Johnny would have taken his coffee to his friends face.    
“You’re the one all over Taeyong. So unless you want me to make a case of that, I’d say you should stop making a case of my crush being your crushes crush.”

Jaehyun smirked, “So it is a crush?”

Johnny picked up a coffee in each hand, fingers clinging the pastry beside his own. “Shut up.” 


	2. Haiku Sake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! After so many months, I thought I'd finally update this AU! If there are any things I need to correct, in my grammar, spelling; don't be afraid to let me know down below!! Its been a while since I came back to this, so thank you so much for reading! All feedback is much appreciated. xoxo!

Taeyong leaned over the glass counter near the back of the store, scrolling with his eyes over the rows of different piercings. He had recently gotten his third bridge pierced, to add to  his already pierced conch and tongue; it hadn’t been even two weeks before he wanted new charms.    
Sicheng pointed to a small, silver bumble bee on on the left corner of the case,

“That would look cute.” He suggested, “Or maybe the dragon? It has a tail that hangs down.”

Taeyong made a small cooing sound, “I think I’ll get that one...ooh! And maybe also this one?” He said, beaming as he pointed to a small cuff that had been etched with flowers. It sparkled in the reflection on the light of the display case.

“I don’t think we have any particularly interesting tongue rings, by the way…” Sicheng said, “You might have to check with someplace else. Or like online.” 

“I like the one I have, I guess. It’s plain, but tongue rings can’t really get any fancier..”

Sicheng turned to face away from him. Taeyong continued,

“Do you and Doyoung want to go get lunch at Mikuni’s? We all get off around the same time. You skipped out to babysit your little brother last week.” He asked from the floor, “And, hey, I’ll get the dragon one.”

Sicheng waved his hand and ducked down, opening up the case; “Not my fault. Renjun would burn the house down without Lay there. And...yeah, I guess, if you’re buying.”  
Sicheng chewed the inside of his cheek as he punched his employee code into the register after standing, making sure the total came half-off instead of full price.

Taeyong snorted, tugging on his pocket chain to reveal his wallet. He pulled out a red and silver debit card, sliding it across the counter. Sicheng popped the chip-side in and handed it back. 

“I was kidding. I’ll pay.” Sicheng mused, as he slid the jewelry into a small box, “See you in thirty minutes?” 

Taeyong smiled, sticking out his tongue so his ring at just past his teeth as he took his purchase, 

“Gotcha.” 

 

* * *

  
  


Sicheng stretched, putting his foot up onto a small lift near the bottom of the counter to lean forward. His calves ached just for a second, but it felt good to work them after being on his feet so much. The price of working in retail. 

The small, ever so obnoxious bell of a customer caught his attention; he smiled at the floor, “Hey there!” He greeted. Sicheng straightened, looking ahead. 

“Sorry, no losers allowed.” He added.

Doyoung, who walked alongside Taeyong, frowned; it was too cute to be taken seriously.

“Then why are you working here? Don’t they have a no jerk policy too?” He retorted, his lips curving slightly. 

Taeyong snorted as Sicheng batted his eyes with a sweet, too snarky smile, “I’m an exception.” He cooed.

 

Doyoung rolled his eyes as Taeyong coughed lightly, hiding his amusement. Sicheng let his lips curl into a full smirk as he walked out from behind the counter. 

“Yiyang is in the back. She’s closing for me tonight. Are we still going to Mikuni’s?”

Taeyong was about to answer before Doyoung scoffed, turning towards him.

“I thought you said we were going to- No!”

Taeyong raised his shoulders, “You wouldn’t have clocked out if I told the truth. I already reserved a table and you know how much I love-”

“You don’t like Tonkatsu that much.”

“I do too!”   
“You’ve only ordered it ONCE, and you didn’t-”

Sicheng adjusted his sweater on his shoulders and flicked away his soft, red bangs. 

“I want TanTan Ramen.” He interrupted, “And I really like their Tonkatsu too…”

Doyoung looked to him and opened his mouth to retort, but gave up quickly. Taeyong huffed, 

“It’s settled. I’m totally starving, so let’s get going.”

 

* * *

 

The restaurant was decently crowded; it was a good idea to make reservations beforehand, as the boys were seated as they came in. They sat at a booth near the bar; behind Sicheng on one side, was a large fish tank that occupied a variety of different breeds; ranging from different goldfish, a puffer fish, and a few particularly brightly colored clown and angelfish. 

The neon purple lights that lined the bar reflected nicely on the glass. Taeyong and Doyoung sat opposite of him, scanning the drink menus. 

“That key lime cocktail looks pretty nice.” Taeyong spoke up, pointing at the selection.

“I might actually get that.” Doyoung replied.

Sicheng pursed his lips, unsure of what he wanted, himself. He wasn’t quite old enough to get anything fancy yet, but he was leaning towards something sweet anyways…

Suddenly, Doyoung flipped his menu up harshly so it covered his face, creating a slapping sound. Sicheng blinked and looked up.

“It’s so good to see you guys!” A voice spoke up from behind him. Suddenly, he was being embraced, and a warm smile passed over his lips. 

“Hi, Yuta!” He replied. The arms slipped away, and his view was clear. 

Nakamoto Yuta stood in a sleek uniform with a clean apron and a small notepad; a sunny smile to top it all off. He was absolutely beaming. Taeyong grinned too, as if it was infectious to everyone at the table...almost everyone. 

“You look so cute these days, Winnie!” Yuta mused before looking to Taeyong, “And dude, new piercing?” He added, making an implication to the new dragon he had purchased earlier. 

Taeyong nodded, putting a finger under the chain tail to show it off, “Yeah, you like it?”

“I love it!” Yuta replied. 

Sicheng smiled before looking over to Doyoung, who was still hidden behind his drink menu. The other two seemed to do the same.

Yuta made a soft sound, “Hello gorgeous. I see you’re invested in our selection. Do you want something special?”

Doyoung slapped the menu down on the table, “Yeah, can we get another waiter?”

Sicheng couldn’t help but snort as Yuta put a hand on his hip, 

“I’m sorry sir, but I’m the only one on shift who has the capacity to deal with your ass tonight.” 

Taeyong covered his mouth to hide his grin, causing Doyoung to hiss in his direction.

“Just...get me the keylime thing, Nakamoto.” He snapped before looking away.

Yuta clicked his tongue as he pulled out his pen,

“On the house, for the tsundere.” He said. His lips curled just above his teeth as he listened to Doyoung immediately shift his arms in embarassed offense. He looked between Taeyong and Sicheng, waiting for their orders as well.

“I’ll...just get coke and grenadine.” Sicheng murmured.

“Haiku sake?” Taeyong asked, lifting his tongue so it came out almost like a question, rather than a request. Yuta nodded. 

“I take it you need a sec to order the rest?” He asked.

Sicheng shrugged, “I know what I want.”

“Same here. And I know what he wants.” Taeyong added, nodding towards Doyoung, who was now typing away on his phone, pretending to be focused. 

“What can I getcha?”

“TanTan Ramen and some edamame.” 

“Tonkatsu for me and then the Daikon Hamachi for Dons.”

Yuta nodded along before clipping his pen to his apron and tucking away the notepad. He took the menus off the table and winked in Taeyong’s direction,

“I’ll send that in right after I ring up the next few tables. I’ll be quick. Let me know if you need anything else, lovelies.” He cooed. 

Both Sicheng and Taeyong smiled and thanked him before going back to their own world as Yuta scampered off. 

“What is your damage, Carrots?” Taeyong hissed with a smirk, nudging Doyoung. 

Doyoung set his phone on the tale with a salty expression,

“I am not going to talk about this here.”

Sicheng tilted his head slightly, 

“What is the beef between you and Yuta?” He asked.

Doyoung began to talk with his hands, 

“There is no beef. I just…I just don’t like him. He’s cocky and-”

Taeyong interrupted, leaning in towards Sicheng, “He likes him.”

“I DO NOT.”

“Do too. Remember when he worked in the south wing at that record store? You’d drop off lunch for him like, once a week, without leaving your name. I mean, I told him-”

Doyoung grabbed Taeyong’s jacket, 

“What do you mean you told him!?”

“Lower your voice, jackass-” 

 

Sicheng turned away as the two bickered, watching the establishment bustle. Waiters and waitresses carried out different, colorful platters of sushi and hotpots, and fancy drinks that ranged from small glasses of sake to large and expensive cocktails. 

One of the waitresses passed by their table and sat down the drinks, though Sicheng only gave her a thankful nod, rather than his full attention. Doyoung and Taeyong only paused their argument for a second to do the same. 

He scanned the walls and over the different customers, before his eyes landed on the front desk. A shorter girl with long, dark hair, started to walk in their direction, suggesting an empty table across from his own to the two patrons behind her.

A smaller girl with cat-shaped lips and short hair, combed backwards. Her blue jeans sagged just slightly, and her hands were tucked into a sweatshirt. Next to her, a tall young man with black hair, in a dress shirt and torn jeans. A few piercings here and there, bright cheeks, plush lips; he looked like Johnny. 

Sicheng choked on practically nothing, taking a moment to turn away and covered his face with a napkin. He stared down at the table as he listened to the waitress seat him and his friend just an isle over. 

“I’m going to kill myself.” He hissed.

Doyoung and Taeyong, who were still bickering, finally grew silent before they both huffed in unison, 

_ “What?”  _


	3. Indifferent.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! Here is the next update! I didn't have time to read over and catch any mistakes, so if anyone could let me know if slipped or give me some critique, that would be absolutely amazing!! I had to rush this one a bit, so I apologize if the pacing is just flat out awful.  
> In any case, thank you all so much!

  
  
  


A figure passed the side of the table, careful to move in a way that didn’t tip the tray in their arm. The table across from them was hidden as drinks were set on the counter. For a short moment, Taeyong and Doyoung took the opportunity to express concern in the direction of Sicheng’s sudden epiphany; pulling their drinks closer and looking over. 

The waitress moved away and  Johnny was once again revealed to them. Sicheng was staring out towards the other side of the restaurant,  ignoring his drink completely. 

 

Taeyong made a small noise that caused Doyoung to jump, before the table was left with only two. Sicheng winced.

_ “ _ Jonathan!” Taeyong snapped, standing from his seat, “Amber, you look great.” 

Doyoung glanced over to Sicheng, who sat in the same position. 

‘So he’s here, and hes with a date. Fuck.’ Sicheng thought, almost out loud as he chewed the inside of his cheek. He almost hurt himself doing so as he heard Johnny return the excited greeting. 

“Tae, hey! What are you doing? Oh, hey-”

Amber, the woman with him, spoke up, “Thanks! Would it be weird just to join you?”

Sicheng made a sound; Doyoung grimaced.

Taeyong waved, “Dude, no way! Come on, just pull your chairs over.”

Johnny and Amber both smiled, following Taeyong’s lead across the isle and sliding over. Amber sat next to Doyoung along with Johnny, while Taeyong sat comfortably beside Sicheng, who was still looking in the opposite direction. 

A hand slapped him on the back, causing him to sit up. 

“Winnie, this is Johnny- you know Johnny-, and his sister Amber.” Taeyong mused. Sicheng, with the utmost reluctance, looked up. A very strange, half-assed smirk crossed his face,

“Sister.” He muttered. 

Johnny blinked, putting his hands in his lap. He smiled in return, something almost as strange and almost as half-assed. Amber moved her hands to pat Doyoung’s head, although he protested.

“It's so nice to see my favourite rabbit. I remember our choir day-”

“Literally, we saw each other like, last month. No need to recite college like this is a campfire story.” Doyoung interrupted. Sicheng kicked Taeyong under the table, hoping that his soft yelp would come off as an ugly laugh- and it did. 

Johnny cleared his throat, “I’m not actually sure what to order? I mean-”

Taeyong, who was still grimacing, tried to smile, “Yuta should be dropping off our platters. Just ask him for his special. Its Doyoung’s favourite.”

Doyoung replied by kicking him, which caused Taeyong to hiss, “Hey, what’s with the table derby?” under his breath. ‘

Sicheng glanced across the table before looking back at Johnny, swallowing hard. Amber grinned,

“Winnie, right?”

Sicheng took the up for conversation as an excuse to look away from Johnny,

“Yeah, it's...nice to meet you.”

Amber glanced quickly to Doyoung, who nodded, before looking back, 

“你几岁?” (How old are you?)

Sicheng’s brow quirked for a second as he opened his mouth to reply, but paused. Hesitantly he replied, “十九...您会说汉语吗?” (19...do you speak chinese?)

Amber laughed, “明显地!” (Obviously!) 

Sicheng’s smile relaxed slightly, “对不起...” (Sorry…) He chuckled. Johnny, Taeyong, and Doyoung, who were confused at first, had melted into their own conversation. 

Amber leaned over the table slightly, 

“ 很高兴见到你...我的兄弟对你说了很多.” (Its nice to finally meet you. My brother has talked a lot about you.) She muttered. 

Sicheng felt heat press up onto his cheeks, “哦?”

Amber smiled and leaned back again, before looking over to the isle. Sicheng looked too, grimacing. Yuta was walking towards them, arms full of different platters. Another girl trailed behind him, setting down two more drinks for Johnny and Amber. Doyoung huffed.   
“Alrighty.” Yuta said, carefully setting down each platter one by one. First the ramen and dumplings for Sicheng, the maki platters for Doyoung and Tae, and then complimentary rolls for both Johnny and Amber.

“Did you guys want anything else?” He asked, making an implication toward the siblings. They both shook their heads, accepting the sodas from the waitress as they politely declined. Yuta smiled, and gently leaned into Doyoung,

“And you?” He cooed. Doyoung picked up his chopsticks swiftly, turning his head,

“I’d like for you to go back to work, now, thank you.”

Sicheng felt something tug at his lips when he heard Johnny murmur, “Tsundere…” under his breath teasingly. Yuta shrugged, winked, and walked off with the empty trays under his arm. 

Amber clicked her tongue on her teeth, “I missed your bickering.” 

Taeyong grinned, “Try living with it!”

The five of them began to dig in to their meal, picking from the different roles and chattering amongst themselves. Amber pulled Sicheng into a conversation in Chinese, leaving the other boys to their own devices. Of course, he pushed to suggest his name was Sicheng: not Winnie. 

  Johnny picked up one of his own maki rolls and leaned to pop it in Taeyongs mouth with his chopsticks. Doyoung leaned his head to the side, suggesting he also wanted a piece. Johnny obliged, laughing while he fed his friend. 

“You look like a rabbit with you mouthful.” Taeyong poked. Doyoung made a muffled protest, his cheeks round. 

 

Amber suddenly smiled, 

“Sicheng, do you want a bite?” 

The whole table looked at him, including Johnny, who was blank faced, now. Sicheng said nothing at first, just letting his lips twitch in confusion. 

 

“S-sure.” He finally muttered. He moved his hand to pick up his chopsticks, glancing down only for a moment. 

When he looked back up, he blinked in surprise. 

Johnny had leaned over, and was holding up a small piece of sushi between his own chopsticks, up to Sicheng. He looked nervous: if the blush didn’t give it away. But outside of that, he was still somewhat blank. 

Sicheng felt his face heat up as he opened his mouth instinctively, though slowly. 

The sushi sat on his tongue and he let his lips touch again, making a small, ‘Hmph’. 

Taeyong looked over to Doyoung, 

“Will you feed me too, Doyoung-kun?” He whined, imitating Yuta’s endearing accent. Doyoung made a face and stuck out his tongue, replying with a scoff in the back of his throat. 

 

The night edged on with Johnny quickly absorbing himself with the others, while Sicheng talked more with Amber; they completely avoided each other for the next forty-five minutes as if the tension from the spoon-feeding wasn’t hanging over their heads, painfully awkward. At some point, Yuta passed by to set down the check and refill drinks, distracting them all as Doyoung’s incesent attitude rolled into something even more embarassing. They laughed as Yuta left after a few short quips, before they began to gather themselves to head out. 

Amber and Johnny stood first, followed by the other three. Taeyong made a small sound as he looked back at the table, watching as Doyoung attempted to discreetly lay down a tip underneath the tray. 

“If you really do hate Nakamoto, why are you dropping 15$ for him to pocket?”

Doyoung’s face was a darker shade of pink now; although it was flushed from the moment they walked in, 

“Shut up.”

Johnny hummed, making Sicheng jump. The taller boy had slowed behind the others to walk beside him.

“I think they like each other.” He said. Sicheng chewed the inside of his cheek,

“They do.” Sicheng confirmed quietly, clasping his own hands together nervously. 

Johnny put his own hands in the pockets of his patched jacket. They both watched as Amber tugged at Doyoung teasingly, and Taeyong laughed. 

“Doyoung isn’t very good with liking others.” Sicheng continued, keeping his voice soft. They exited quickly, and Johnny stepped forward to hold open the door for Sicheng as the others walked out; in their own world, caught up with bickering. Sicheng took a deep breath through his nose and muttered a light, ‘Thank you’, under his breath.

“Neither am I. Maybe it’s an aquarius thing.” Johnny mused as he closed the door. 

“I’m a Scorpio.” Sicheng said, looking at the cement as they trutted. 

“You’re into astrology?” 

“Not really. More so the chinese zodiac.”

“Oh, right. My sister Amber is chinese. You talked a lot, right?”

Sicheng made a face at the sidewalk, “Oh, uh. Yeah.”

“I think I’m a pig.”

“I’m an Ox.” 

Johnny looked at him, “What does that mean?”

Sicheng looked back instinctively, obviously red.

“Which part?” 

“U-uh...I-I mean,” Johnny stumbled on his words, and looked away, “Like both of them together?”

Sicheng furrowed his eyebrows, “In what context?”

“Any.” 

There was a small moment that passed between them that consisted of their awkward silence before Sicheng spoke again, 

“They’re indifferent.” He said. 

Johnny nodded. 

Doyoung suddenly called out in front of them, “Hey, do you guy’s need a ride home? Amber said you took a Lyft.”

Johnny smiled, “Yeah, sure!” 

Sicheng rolled his eyes as they approached the little orange SUV. He made a strong effort to get in the front seat, parting from Johnny to walk around the other side of the car. They piled in, chattering, clicking their seatbelts. 

‘They’re indifferent.’  Sicheng thought to himself.

 

The car ride was only maybe twenty minutes total, with a break in between to say goodbye and share thank yous after they arrived at Amber’s apartment. Sicheng, on the other hand, only waved quickly before settling back onto his phone. Taeyong asked if he could take the front seat since Sicheng was the next to be dropped off. Hesitantly, he agreed, and they walked on opposite sides of the car to swap places. 

Sicheng settled into his seat, clicking his seatbelt and leaning back. Taeyong and Doyoung started to look for a station on the radio as they took off, beginning another session of bickering. It was a sickening cycle. 

Street lights passed by in the dark outside of the window, creating a new mood as the evening settled into night. Sicheng yawned, pressing his hand to the space beside him. Leather, though, was not what greeted his palms. He blinked, lifting his hand and looking down. 

A black jean jacket, covered in patches and small safety pins, was bundled up on the middle seat. ‘SEO’ was printed in fabric paint on the back, above a poorly sewed MCR logo. 

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys!! So basically this is uhhh me writing stuff for my own rare pair because I'm super thirsty for Winny AUs. My best friend came up with this idea at 3am and sparked my creative motivation after explaining they imagined Johnny working at Hot Topic.  
> anyways uhhh,,, thanks for reading and I'll probably write the next chapter soon. Feedback and ideas are much appreciated!!! thanks y'all


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